Todd Stiers, Berkeley US

Todd Stiers, Berkeley, CA US

Patent application number

Description

Published

20080248782

Providing Devices With Command Functionality in Content Streams - Mechanisms are provided for delivering command functionality such as out-of-band data to a mobile device in a media stream. A media stream may be divided into multiple portions. One or more portions are modified to include command functionality. The command functionality associated with the media stream is extracted at a mobile device. In particular instances, the command functionality provides notification of an event. The command functionality may be executed using one or more virtual machines associated with the mobile device.

10-09-2008

20080270567

Customizing and Distributing Data in Network Environments - Various techniques and mechanisms allow customization of data for delivery to different end users. The data can be provided as a series of chunks. In some instances, a server has a number of modules used to customize and select chunks of data using a variety of factors such as user preferences, network bandwidth, subscription levels, etc. The chunks are distributed in and across a variety of network architectures such as client server, mesh, point-to-point, peer-to-peer, etc.

10-30-2008

20090144777

REAL-TIME MOST WATCHED GUIDE ORDERING AND GENERATION - Mechanisms are provided for allowing a user to dynamically obtain program guide data and select video content in an efficient and effective manner. A guide generator is configured to obtain program guide information from multiple sources including content providers. The guide generator compiles a real-time most watched program guide by determining viewing patterns associated with various channels and video clips. Channels and video clips requested most frequently are listed first. A real-time most watched program guide including data such as program titles, times, icons, and links is then provided and displayed as needed on client devices. Potentially limitless amounts of program guide data can be provided on a client device while still allowing a user to efficiently and effectively select video content.

06-04-2009

20090158337

MOSAIC VIDEO CONTENT SELECTION MECHANISM - Mechanisms are provided for allowing a user to dynamically obtain program guide data and select video content in an efficient and effective manner. A guide generator is configured to obtain program guide information from multiple sources including content providers. The guide generator compiles a real-time most watched program guide by determining viewing patterns associated with various channels and video clips. Channels and video clips requested most frequently are listed first. A real-time most watched program guide including data such as program titles, times, icons, and links is then provided and displayed as needed on client devices. Potentially limitless amounts of program guide data can be provided on a client device while still allowing a user to efficiently and effectively select video content.

06-18-2009

20090259767

CONTENT SERVER MEDIA STREAM MANAGEMENT - Mechanisms are provided to manage media stream transmissions at a content server. A content server detects that a user on a device such as a mobile device has stopped playing a live media stream. The content server maintains information associating the user with the media stream and time information. When the content server detects that a user wishes to resume playing a media stream, the user can continue viewing the media stream from where stoppage occurred. In many instances, the content server stores many hours of live media stream data and allows a user to select a particular starting point.

10-15-2009

20090274437

EMBEDDING DATA IN MEDIA METADATA TRACKS DURING PLAYBACK - Data is embedded onto new or existing media metadata tracks during playback of a media stream. A content server provides a media stream to a mobile device. Data associated with the playback of the media stream on the mobile device is obtained by the content server and saved to the media stream itself. Data may include playback statistics, viewing characteristics, channel changes, comment logs, etc. The information can be stored in a time-correlated manner to allow extraction and analysis of data.

11-05-2009

20090276402

SEARCH SYSTEM USING MEDIA METADATA TRACKS - Real-time metadata tracks recorded to media streams allow search and analysis operations in a variety of contexts. Search queries can be performed using information in real-time metadata tracks such as closed captioning, sub-title, statistical tracks, miscellaneous data tracks. Media streams can also be augmented with additional tracks. The metadata tracks not only allow efficient searching and indexing, but also allow insertion of content specific advertising during appropriate portions of a media stream based on the content of the metadata tracks.

11-05-2009

20100064054

REMOTE FAST FORWARD AND REWIND FUNCTIONALITY FOR CLIENT DEVICES - A client device receiving a media stream from a remote content server can fast forward and rewind the media stream without storing the media stream on the client device. In some examples, the client sends index, direction, and speed information to the content server based on desired fast forward and rewind operation. The content server transmits selected sets of frames to the client devices based on the index, direction, and speed information to allow a client to play a fast forward or rewind media stream that provides a user with discernible portions of content.

03-11-2010

20100287589

REAL-TIME GROUP DRIVEN AUTOMATED MEDIA CONTENT SELECTION - Mechanisms are provided for automatically selecting media content for presentation on a device such as a mobile device. An application and content provider compiles real-time most watched program information by determining viewing patterns associated with various individuals and groups. Channels and video clips requested most frequently are automatically displayed to a user. In some examples, the most popular programming associated with a particular group of friends, a particular user location, an interest set, or a demographic profile is automatically displayed to a user. In another example, the content with the largest rate of increase in viewership is automatically displayed to the user.

11-11-2010

20110072448

IMPLICIT MECHANISM FOR DETERMINING USER RESPONSE TO MEDIA - Mechanisms are provided for implicitly determining user response to media content. User response may include satisfaction, interest, and engagement levels. User response is determined implicitly by measuring channel switching, channel switching frequency, duration of viewing time, content duration, etc. in a linear or non-linear manner. In one example, the viewing duration evaluated with the media content duration to generate an interest factor. A relative interest factor for the media content is generated by referencing interest factors for the user for other pieces of media content for the user. User responses can be analyzed to determine user attention span, make content recommendations, deliver selected versions of content, customize advertising for a user, etc.

03-24-2011

20110202515

RETRIEVAL AND DISPLAY OF RELATED CONTENT USING TEXT STREAM DATA FEEDS - Mechanisms are provided for retrieving and presenting related content using text stream data feeds. Text stream data feeds such as caption information associated with media content or conversations associated with social networking applications are aggregated and used to retrieve related media content, text documents, and advertisements. Text stream data feeds that a user is exposed to may indicate that the user is interested or at least primed for particular types of related content. In particular examples, an inverse vector space search engine is used to determine particular pieces of related content and categories of interest. Post filtering may also be applied to the results.

08-18-2011

20110202559

AUTOMATED CATEGORIZATION OF SEMI-STRUCTURED DATA - Mechanisms are provided for generating an inverse vector space search engine to automatically categorize and/or tag semi-structured data. In particular examples, an inverse vector space search engine includes multiple genres each associated with multiple keywords. Metadata such as media content description, caption information, review information, etc., are identified to determine distance between the media content and the various genres. Genres having a closer distance to media content are determined to be genres more closely describing the media content. Post filtering, alternate category determination, and user profiling may also be applied to the results.

08-18-2011

20120263438

SEARCH SYSTEM USING MEDIA METADATA TRACKS - Real-time metadata tracks recorded to media streams allow search and analysis operations in a variety of contexts. Search queries can be performed using information in real-time metadata tracks such as closed captioning, sub-title, statistical tracks, miscellaneous data tracks. Media streams can also be augmented with additional tracks. The metadata tracks not only allow efficient searching and indexing, but also allow insertion of content specific advertising during appropriate portions of a media stream based on the content of the metadata tracks.

10-18-2012

20140289375

CONTENT SEVER MEDIA STREAM MANAGEMENT - Mechanisms are provided to manage media stream transmissions at a content server. A content server detects that a user on a device such as a mobile device has stopped playing a live media stream. The content server maintains information associating the user with the media stream and time information. When the content server detects that a user wishes to resume playing a media stream, the user can continue viewing the media stream from where stoppage occurred. In many instances, the content server stores many hours of live media stream data and allows a user to select a particular starting point.